


War of Hearts

by sweet_fogarty



Category: The 100 (TV)
Genre: Enemies to Lovers, F/F, F/M, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Platonic Relationships, childhood enemies, platonic bellarke - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-06-12
Updated: 2020-06-13
Packaged: 2021-03-04 06:54:19
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 2
Words: 7,245
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24689464
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sweet_fogarty/pseuds/sweet_fogarty
Summary: Everly Jameson and Bellamy Blake had been arch-nemeses since they were children on the ark. The ground proved no different when Everly crashed landed with the rest of the stations, but after Everly goes to the City of Light and comes crashing back to reality she finally understands what they mean when they say there's a fine line between love and hate.
Relationships: Bellamy Blake/Original Character(s), Bellamy Blake/Original Female Character(s), Echo/Original Female Character(s), Raven Reyes/Original Female Character(s)
Kudos: 4





	1. Pain Demands to be Felt

**EVERLY JAMESON DID NOT REALIZE** how much pain she’d endured until it was unleashed on her all at once. One minute she was floating outside of herself, trapped between a bustling city where all she could feel was a buzzing under her skin and the real world, where she was fighting her friends. But it wasn’t really her, it was like she was watching herself, watching her body make actions without her consent. And then everything was crashing around her. 

Everly thinks she’s screaming but she isn’t quite sure. Everything’s black for a moment before flashes begin to fly across her vision. Every time she’s ever fallen, gotten a papercut or gotten into a fight. She sees herself getting beaten repeatedly in her guard training classes. She feels the electric baton in her side as Shumway grows irritated with her antics. Then she’s flying, and her body is falling rapidly. Everly is flung across the metal floors of the ark as its sent tumbling to the ground. She can feel the confusion, hear the ringing in her ears and the shouts from the others. 

She’s flying again and she’s fighting with the Trikru cavalry, Indra beating her to the ground time after time. She feels the blade of swords slashing against her skin. She flies and she’s sitting by a radio, her best friend beside her. She feels the anxiety coursing through her veins before a voice comes through and she’s relieved of her worry. She flies and she’s in Mount Weather, there’s a drill in her hip and she’s screaming, writhing on the table as Raven and Abby and Kane scream and beg and plead.

Everly’s mind sends her soaring again and this time it’s months that pass, she sees herself arguing with a familiar face. Bellamy Blake and herself spitting insults and she feels the drop in her chest every time he walks away from her or holds Gina’s hand. But then she’s back in Mount Weather, she’s bleeding out on the ground and Sinclair is holding his hand to her shoulder, pressing against it to keep pressure applied as Raven cries into the radio. Everly is screaming,  _ Mom, no! Please, mom! _

Everly feels like she’s dying as her mind jumps again, days later at a memorial and she’s speaking for her mother and she’s holding in sobs. She can feel the tightness of her chest as she meets her father’s eyes. Everly is then walking down a hallway, opening the door to her room and suddenly her throat is shredding, her vocal cords straining as she screams and wails and watches her father’s lifeless body be carted out of her room, exit hole in the back of his head.

She’s standing in an open field, her breathing fast and erratic as her head darts around and watches. Gunshots are going off but they’re not from her, her gun has been thrown to the ground as she watches her people, her  _ friends _ , shoot mercilessly at the sleeping army around them. Everly’s standing in the middle of Arkadia now and she’s being handing a blue octagon,  _ it’ll all be okay now _ Jaha says soothingly and she’s nodding, swallowing the key with a dry mouth. 

Everly sees herself floating again, getting punch after punch in the face, electric baton and gunshots all together. And then she’s in Polis kneeling above her childhood arch-nemesis and her hands are on his throat squeezing as hard as she can. Everly sees the pain in Bellamy’s eyes and she watches him mouth the words  _ I’m sorry _ .

With a final scream Everly’s eyes shoot open, and she’s sobbing and flailing her body around until her vision starts to focus. She’s laying on her back now, her head resting on something soft, a jacket she thinks. Everly’s chest and going up and down at an alarming rate and she feels hands holding her biceps down. Through tear-clouded eyes, she sees Bellamy’s face above hers and soon the tears are falling and she tastes a mixture of salt and metal as she whispers, broken, “ _ Bellamy _ ?”

“You’re okay, you’re okay now,” Bellamy’s whispering but her chest constricts and she sobs, loudly, painfully. Everly’s shaking her head as she thinks of all the things she’d done in the past month, “ _ No, no, no. _ I’m sorry. I’m so  _ sorry _ .”

Bellamy’s response is quick, she feels one of his hands on her cheek and his thumb is rubbing her skin soothingly. His other hand has moved to her hair and is running through her greasy, blood-soaked brown hair. Bellamy continues to mutter words of comfort until Everly is calmed significantly, slowly he helps her sit up and watches with caution as she looks around the room at her friends. Clarke Griffin is standing by the window with her thumbnail between her teeth but her eyes are moving from Abby and Kane to Bellamy and Everly. Octavia is standing over the dead body of Charles Pike and Thelonious Jaha is sobbing on his knees.

“Are you okay to stand?” Bellamy asks and with Everly’s nod, he’s helping her stand. They’re chest to chest now and when Everly looks up her eyes are locked with his. She thinks back to the pain returning and remembers all the time her heart had sunk when they’d fought, all the times she felt like she was going to die when he walked away from her and she realizes that she never really hated him at all. Everly bites down on her lip, ignoring the taste of blood as she averts her eyes quickly before meeting his once again, “I’m sorry for  _ everything _ , Bellamy.”

Bellamy nods, hand hesitantly reaching forward. Everly falters but doesn’t move and Bellamy takes it as a sign to continue. His fingers brush her hair behind her ear, his hand staying there for a moment before he’s pulling her head towards him and hugging her. Everly stands not knowing what to do for a moment before she swallows, closing her eyes and wrapping her arms around his waist and squeezes. When they pull apart she sees a small smile on his face before his hand is on the small of her back and he’s leading the two of them towards Clarke.

Clarke’s reaching out towards Everly the second they’re in front of one another. Once again, Everly is stiff but eventually leans into the hug. She’s not used to this kind of affection, especially since she and Clarke aren’t close, but Clarke is family now. Raven is her best friend, her sister, and Clarke is a part of Raven’s family, which makes her a part of Everly’s. Clarke’s voice is soft as she asks, “are you okay?” And Everly nods back, rubbing her hand up and down the blonde girl’s back before they pull away.

Everly watches as Clarke’s eyes dart around the room, guilt coating her features as she fiddles with the bandage wrapped around her forearm. She still has streaks of nightblood coming from her nose and Everly can see the tears pooling in her eyes. It’s Bellamy that speaks, “Clarke you’re not acting like someone who just saved the world.”

“Because we didn’t,” Clarke answers, her head shaking as she looks into Bellamy’s eyes before moving to meet Everly’s, “not yet.”

Everly sighs, hands moving to run over her face before they fall back to her sides and she’s looking at the ceiling, her eyes blinking rapidly to keep the tears at bay. Bellamy’s stunned beside her and she realizes she’s going to have to take the lead on this one. “Okay,” Everly starts, grabbing their arms and pulling them off to the corner of the room so that they’re away from everyone else, “what the hell does that mean, Griffin?”

“It  _ means _ the world is ending,  _ again _ ,” Clarke grumbles, falling onto the floor dejectedly. Bellamy and Everly follow suite, on either side of the blonde as she continues. “I was about to flip the killswitch and A.L.I.E. showed up. She said the reason she’s been getting everyone to take the key is that the nuclear powerplants left over from the first apocalypse are melting down.”

Bellamy voices Everly’s confusion, “Okay, and what does that mean?”

“It means we have six months to find a way to survive five years on earth without access to the outside world because the radiation will be too high for even the people born on the ark,” Clarke says finally and Everly feels her heart drop into her stomach. 

Pursing her lips she reaches over, hand grasping Clarke’s as she looks at the two to her left, “Never a dull moment, huh?”

It takes an hour for Everly to descend the tower at Polis and get to the ground. Apparently they’d destroyed the elevator on their pursuit to save the world, and while Everly was grateful to no longer be controlled by a psychotic AI, she was cursing Bellamy and the others for making her have to climb down a crumbling skyscraper. 

When she jumps off the remaining bit of the tower, Everly bends over and puts her hands on her knees, heaving. She feels patting on her back and when she looks up Bellamy is grinning down at her mockingly. Everly rolls her eyes, shoving the man’s hand off of her and flips him off. Bellamy only laughs and from her peripheral vision, she sees Clarke smiling softly at the two. 

Everly stands and sighs, arching her back to crack it before swinging her arms around to get the stiffness out. When she’s finished she notices Clarke and Bellamy staring off in the distance, and when she follows their gazes she sees Octavia and Indra speaking to one another. Everly crosses her arms over her chest and looks over at Bellamy, noting the conflicted expression on his face she awkwardly pats his bicep in an attempt of comforting him, “You worried about her?”

At his nod Clarke continues, “She’ll be okay, Octavia can take care of herself.”

“That’s not what I’m worried about.”

Everly grimaces, remembering Pike’s dead body and the expressionless look Octavia held when she pulled her sword out. She rocks herself on the heels of her feet as Clarke sighs and turns her body towards the older boy, “She won’t be charged. Everyone will say Pike had it coming.”

“And he  _ did _ ,” Everly presses, ignoring the looks Clarke and Bellamy share as she continues, “he used people’s grief to manipulate them and turn them into something they’re not. And his murderous rampage didn’t just end with grounders. Everyone knows that. He deserved it.”

“Maybe we all do,” Bellamy mumbles and looks down as he kicks rubble at his feet. Everly bites the inside of her cheek, remembering that Bellamy had been one of Pike’s victims, he had been there shooting at the sleeping army as Everly panicked. Her eyes water at the memory, knowing she had also been an accessory, and she reaches forward and lets the tips of her fingers touch Bellamy’s hand. Bellamy looks up, his own eyes full of tears as they meet Everly’s and he nods to show he’s okay before they all turn their eyes back to the crowd of grieving people.

“How do we tell these people that the world is ending after everything they’ve been through?” Clarke asks and her voice is breathy, strained as she holds back the mixture of fear and sadness that threatens to boil over.

Everly shrugs, eyebrows raised as she muses sarcastically, “the same way you told us.” Bellamy rolls his eyes at her, shooting her an unimpressed look before he cuts in, “We don’t, not until we know A.L.I.E. was telling the truth.”

“It was the truth.”

“To be fair Clarke, she was a psychopathic bitch of an AI. Forgive us for airing on the side of caution,” Everly says as she shrugs nonchalantly towards Clarke who shakes her head. Bellamy takes a more sympathetic approach as he places his hand on Clarke’s shoulder, “Still, we keep it to ourselves until we know  _ what _ we’re dealing with and how to stop it.”

Everly nods, agreeing with Bellamy’s solution but Clarke still isn’t convinced, looking up at Bellamy through half-squinted eyes, “You’re afraid of how people will react.”

It’s not a question but Bellamy answers anyway, “Yes. Besides, I could use a break from keeping you alive,” he sighs and Everly notices him looking at her as he says the next part, “We gave them back their pain, Clarke. Let’s not add to that by telling them they’re going to die in six months.”

“The janitor makes a point,” Everly says, panicking at the seemingly affectionate expression Bellamy looked at her with. His face changes to annoyance at the nickname, however, and Everly continues, “I mean you told me and now I’m starting to not really give a fuck about anything at this point.”

“Not helping, Ev,” Bellamy states unimpressed, and even though he says it with an irritated tone Everly’s eyes widen slightly at the nickname. Clarke nods, smiling at Everly’s joking nature and allows Bellamy to continue his speech, “Good. Once everyone’s down, we go home and we get to work. We didn’t survive this long just to let a little radiation take us out.”

“Thank you,” Clarke says standing in front of Bellamy. Bellamy looks over at her, their eyes meeting and Everly swears you can see their bond from miles away. Clarke’s eyes are wide, glistened with tears as she speaks meaningfully, “for keeping me alive.”

Bellamy nods and Everly smiles, reaching forward and squeezing Clarke’s bicep, “We should all be thanking you, Griffin,” she says and Clarke breathes out a laugh. They’re interrupted by the sound of a heartwrenching sob, Everly’s head whipping over to see a woman weeping beside an unconscious man. Clarke gasps and runs forward, causing Everly to follow with a muttered, “Shit!”

“You don’t make it easy,” Bellamy calls after her, following after Clarke and Everly. Everly kneels beside Clarke as they look over the man. He’s dead, it seems. Everly reaches forward, one hand holding his face as the other opens his eye - his pupils are tiny, dead she thinks. Bellamy stands behind Everly, examining the body in confusion, “he didn’t fall.”

Clarke stands, looking horrified as she explains to Bellamy, “he chased me in the city of light.” Everly looks over her shoulder, sharing a look with the other two before she feels a hand clamp around her wrist. Whipping around she sees the grounder woman, she’s angry and uses the hand not holding Everly’s wrist to shove the girl. Everly falls, having been taking by surprise and she lands on her butt. She feels hands grabbing her armpits and helping her. Everly looks behind her, seeing that it was Bellamy that had helped her to her feet and nods at him gratefully. Bellamy’s hand rests on the small of her back protectively but the woman’s gaze burns into Clarke, “Wanheda. You did this.”

It starts a chanting amongst the grounders, Everly and Bellamy each taking one of Clarke’s arms and pulling her behind them. Everly pulls out a handgun from the holster around her waist, aiming it at anyone who gets too close. 

“Wanheda! Wanheda! Wanheda!”

Everly kicks her leg out, kicking a grounder in the shin who tried advancing on them and she grabs Clarke’s forearm and yanks her to a more secluded area. Abby Griffin and Marcus Kane are approaching when Everly lowers her gun and nods towards them. Clarke, noticing them, sighs in relief, “Good. You’re down. We have to go, the rover’s in the north woods.”

“What about the wounded?” Abby asks and Everly runs a hand through her hair, pulling it into a ponytail using the elastic around her wrist. She shakes her head, “do you not hear their death chanting, Doc?”

Bellamy nods, agreeing, “The grounders don’t want our help. Our people we treat at Arkadia.” The sound of static interrupts them and Everly feels relief swell in her chest at the sound of Raven’s voice come through the radio attached to Bellamy’s hip, “Hello? Bellamy, please. Come in.”

Bellamy pulls the radio to his mouth, “Raven. Are you okay?” Everly’s smile is the widest it’s been and she puts her hand over Bellamy’s, moving to stand against his shoulder. “Yeah, yeah, we’re all in one piece.”

Bellamy shares a smile with Everly, “Good, there’s something we need you to look into.” Everly growls under her breath, elbowing Bellamy in the gut. Raven seems to agree, “First tell me how my friends are. Did everyone make it? Where’s Ev?”

Everly pulls the radio towards herself, Bellamy’s arm going with it as she speaks, “I’m here, Raven. Still kicking. I miss you.” She can practically see Raven’s shoulders drop in relief, “I miss you too. How’s Clarke?”

Clarke is now standing behind Everly, a hand on her shoulder as she leans forward to answer Raven, “I’m here, thanks to you. Raven, did A.L.I.E. ever tell you why she created the City of Light?”

“No, why?” Shouting sounds around them, exclaims of terror regarding the king and Clarke ushers Everly and Bellamy away to explain to Raven the end of the world. Everly decides to take the lead, this time opting to take the radio out of Bellamy’s hand instead of holding it with him, “Buckle up Reyes, you remember the apocalypse?”

“How could I forget?” Everly laughs in response but wipes the smile off her face at the serious look Bellamy sends her. She sighs, “Right well turns out there’s still some nuclear powerplants left over. A.L.I.E. told Clarke we have six months before they completely melt down and wipe us out.”

“We need you to look into it,” Bellamy continues, hand going between her shoulder blades. Everly stiffens, trying to ignore the warmth that spreads from his hand and struggles to keep her eyes from widening as Raven comes through, “Nothing like celebrating beating A.L.I.E. like an apocalypse 2.0. I’ll look into it, I’ll let you know what I find when you get back.”

Bellamy re-attaches the radio to his hip and Everly sighs, running a hand down her face. Bellamy has his hands on his hips as Everly looks up at him with a sarcastic grin on her face. The man simply shakes his head, shoving her shoulder so she turns around and they make their way back towards Clarke. Only, when they approach the group they see Echo (an Azgeda spy) with a sword held to Clarke’s throat.

Everly is livid, body shooting forward as she sprints. She makes it halfway across no man’s land before she’s tackled to the ground. One of Echo’s cronies is straddling her waist, a knife pressed against her trachea. Bellamy makes his way to the front of the crowd and yells in pure anger, “Echo! Let them go, Echo! Let them go!”

The knife presses harder and draws blood, Everly growls and ignores Clarke’s reassurances. Echo rolls her eyes, “Back off, Bellamy.”

A soft but lethal voice cuts through the crowd. Caro kom Trikru stabs the man on top of Everly in the side, helping her up, “Breik au em, Echo. Nau. O he nou na na las gon wan op.” (Release her, Echo. Now. Or he won’t be the last to die.) Everly watches the animosity between the two grounders, a look of appreciation on her face as she looks between Echo and Caro, who has moved to stand protectively in front of Everly. Bellamy is behind them.

“Your king is my friend,” Clarke explains seeming bored and desperate, “let us help him.”

“I saw you in the City of Light,” Echo starts, speaking into Clarke’s ear. Everly makes eye contact with the spy, eyebrow raised as she continues, “I know you destroyed it, thank you for that.” Clarke is released, Bellamy grabbing her arm to pull her behind Caro where he and Everly stand. “Look around you, Skaikru did this to us. Because of them, Ontari, your rightful commander, is dead! This imposter stole her flame!”

“No! Wanheda saved us, all of us. Grounder and Skaikru.” Kane exclaims and Everly grimaces, scratching the hair at the crown of her head as she watches the grounders grow irate and agitated. Caro reaches around, wrapping an arm around Clarke from in front and pulls the blonde into her back. Echo is seething as she yells, “There would’ve been nothing to save us from if not for you.”

“Azgeda has no authority here, spy.” Caro spits out, literally spitting towards Echo as she holds her sword out threateningly. Echo laughs, approaching tauntingly, “We do now. In the name of King Roan, as rightful caretakers of the throne of the Commanders, Polis is now under Azgeda rule!”

“Like hell it is,” the Rockline Ambassador steps forward, pushing the trio of girls to the side, and Everly pulls Clarke in line with her and Bellamy. “Where’s your war chief, girl?”

“Our war chief is dead, Ambassador. As a member of the Queen’s guard, command of the army has fallen to me, until the king awakens.” Echo explains, sword held tightly in her hand. The ambassador laughs, spitting the words through her teeth, “If he awakens. Until a new Commander can ascend Polis is to be ruled by the ambassadors of the coalition. If Azgeda wants it, they must take it by force.”

The ambassador’s head is detached from her body in mere seconds, rolling to the ground by Everly’s feet. The brunette bumps into Clarke as she stumbles, “Holy shit.”

“Consider it taken, no Skaikru leaves this city. For Ice Nation!” Echo chants, holding her sword towards the sky. Hands grab at Clarke and Everly, pulling them back as the group of Skaikru members move towards the temple in fear.

Bellamy’s hands are tight as they hold Clarke and Everly’s biceps, “Looks like saving the world will have to wait.”


	2. I've Come too Far to Quit

**PACING HAS BECOME SOMEWHAT OF** a permanent habit of Everly’s. Since Echo’s display of authority and act of war, the remaining members of Skaikru have been split up; either heading back to Arkadia or, like Everly, herded into the temple to discuss further action. It’s been two hours of mindless chatter, useless ‘strategy’ and just Everly pacing back and forth. She can tell it’s starting to grate on the others’ nerves, Caro has given her multiple side-eyed glares and Clarke has tried to get her to sit but none have been successful.

Battle plans have always been a forte of Everly’s; schemes and strategy are a strong asset of hers, part of the reason she was recruited for the guard in the first place. Everly is growing tired of the continuous suggestion to fight their way out and run back to camp - there’s twelve clans against one, and even with guns their best fighters aren’t half as good as the grounders (save for Octavia and the members of Trikru who have aided them). 

Everly’s biting on her thumb nail, right elbow resting against her left arm as it wraps around her waist. She’s stopped her pacing, now standing in one spot as she stares at the wall, head tilted and eyes squinted and it’s clear she’s in deep thought. She’s interrupted when Indra, Octavia and Bellamy enter the temple. Everly waits awkwardly as Indra and Kane embrace, tears in their eyes, and she nods towards Bellamy who nods back.

“Well?” Clarke asks, arms crossed over her chest. Everly moves to stand next to her, mimicking her posture as she too crosses her arms. Bellamy sighs and shakes his head, “You’re not gonna like it.”

“When do we ever?” Everly’s question is rhetorical and Bellamy rolls his eyes but fails to repress the small twitch upwards of his lips. Indra takes to ignoring Everly’s interjection and explains, “When you destroyed the City of Light there were a thousand Azgeda warriors inside the City of Polis.”

“Good timing.”

“The only way to remove them is by force,” Indra continues and Everly scoffs head tilting towards the sky as she curses gods she doesn’t believe in. Octavia is calculated and her voice is cold, unfeeling, unrelenting, “Then let’s remove them.”

“Woah there Buffy,” Everly chastises, referencing a show from a century ago and it’s clear that no one understands, as she receives nothing but annoyed and confused gazes in return. “Even with our guns there’s too many soldiers out there, we can’t overpower them and we are  _ not _ committing another act of genocide just because Octavia can’t keep her murder hard-on in her pants.”

Octavia’s glare cuts through Everly but the older girl merely rolls her eyes. Bellamy’s face is void of expression but he shoves Everly’s shoulder in irritation and warning. Abby shakes her head, moving to stand in front of Everly and Clarke as she takes a more civilized approach, “Slow down, you’re talking about a war.”

“Yes,” Indra starts, looking unfazed at the conflicted expressions of Skaikru, “Rockline, Floukru and Broadleaf will join Trikru without question.”

“Yeah but even with them we’ll still be short, we’ll need the Skaikru firepower,” Caro counters and it’s she that can’t stop pacing now. Abby is shaking her head, “This is madness, we should be leaving with the others while we still have time.”

This time Everly is opposing Abby’s idea, “no, if we flee there’s nothing stopping Azgeda from storming Arkadia and attacking. We need a plan, negotiations or something.”

“Azgeda does not negotiate,” Caro spits and stops her pacing to spin and glare at the group but Kane seems to agree, “They know where we live. If we run, they’ll follow. There are eight other clans, how do we get them to join us?”

“I can do it, but I’ll need the flame.” Indra’s statement is final but Clarke is appalled by the suggestion, her head shaking back and forth quickly. Everly purses her lips, arm reaching out to squeeze Clarke’s bicep. She doesn’t know much about the flame or Clarke’s relationship with Lexa, but she knows that Clarke loved the late Commander, and that somehow, Lexa lives on in the flame. Clarke speaks with finality, her eyebrows furrowed, “No.”

Bellamy sees the hurt in Clarke’s eyes and steps forward slightly, eyes softer as he reasons, “Clarke, the clans will follow whoever has the flame.” But Clarke is persistent and continues with a harsher edge in her voice, “Azgeda wont.”

“She’s right,” Everly says through an exhale of breath, hand itching to run through her hair but resists the urge, playing with the ends of her ponytail instead to not ruin it. She bites down on the inside of her cheek as she thinks out loud, “Ontari was finally the Ice Nation Commander they’d waited for and now she’s dead, they don’t care who has the flame they only care that they’re in charge.”

“Then we fight, that’s the point.” Octavia spits, voice deep and venomous. Everly looks into the younger girl’s eyes, surprised by the hardened coldness that seeps from them and shakes her head, turning back towards Clarke who scoffs slightly. “No it’s not. The point is, there’s no time for a fight. We have to save Roan.”

“ _ Save him _ ? They won’t let us  _ near _ him.” Octavia asks, bewildered and Caro seems to nod in agreement, equally as appalled by the idea. Abby seems to sense the hidden meaning in Clarke’s voice, however, and cuts off whatever the blonde grounder was about to say, facing Clarke, Bellamy and Everly as she asks, “Wait a second, what don’t we know?”

Everly rubs her lips together and crosses her arm, turning her gaze towards the floor of the temple uncomfortably. She wishes she was back in Arkadia, she misses Raven seeing as how the last time she saw her she was shooting at her unconscious body. 

“The reason A.L.I.E. created the City of Light,” Clarke answers with a resigned sigh and Everly looks up, sending the blonde an exasperated expression as Kane asks “Why?” Clarke’s explanation is quick, succinct and to the point, “Nuclear reactors inside power plants that survived the bombs are melting down. Radiation levels are already rising; if we can’t figure out a way to fix it, we’ll all be dead in six months.”

Everly watches the expressions of the others in the temple, it varies from shock to confusion to exasperation and she sighs, resisting smashing her head against the wall in frustration. Kane’s questions don’t cease, “A.L.I.E. told you this?”

“Yes.”

“And you believe her?”

“Raven’s looking into it,” Bellamy answers this time, and Everly nods, her trust in Raven unwavering. Clarke answers her mother with certainty, “I believe her.”

“Even if it’s true, that’s six months away,” Indra starts forward, seeming annoyed that they’re spending time discussing this when they could be fighting, “There are a  _ thousand _ Ice Nation warriors on the street who want to kill us  _ today _ .”

Clarke shakes her head, “They won’t kill us.” Octavia’s scoffs, exasperated and equally as annoyed as Indra, “How could you possibly know that?”

“She doesn’t,” Caro spits with a laugh, “Azgeda is ruthless, merciless and if you think otherwise you are a fool.”

“They won’t kill us,” Clarke reiterates as she looks around at everyone, “because we’re gonna surrender.”

Everly’s hands fall, slapping against her thighs and everyone turns to look at her. Her head is thrown back and she lets out an unceremonious groan, “I’m really regretting trusting your judgement right about now, Griffin.”

  
  


Everly’s statement still stands as she continues her incessant pacing, this time outside of the temple behind Bellamy who held a rifle out a window. She’s taken away from her anxiety by her companion, “He’s going in.”

Everly hurries to her spot next to Bellamy, pulling up a gun of her own and staring down the scope. Jaha has entered the courtyard, Ice Nation on guard as he advances carrying Octavia disguised as the dead Commander, Ontari. Polis is quiet, so it’s easy to hear their conversation, even from where Bellamy and Everly kneel several feet above them.

“Ontari belongs with her people,” Jaha says as he passes the body to one of the warrior’s at Echo’s side. Said woman looks down her nose at the smaller man, “Put her with the others. And show him how Ice Nation repays a favour to the bringer of the key.”

Everly breathes in sharply and winces as some of the men at Echo’s side begin to attack Jaha, Bellamy tightens his hold on his rifle, pointing it directly at Echo’s head and Everly follows, barrel of the gun pointed at the man holding Jaha down. Another man runs in, “Skaikru is surrendering.”

Everly smirks, nudging Bellamy with her elbow and winks when he looks over at her. Bellamy rolls his eyes, “pay attention.” And so she does, returning her gaze to down below where Echo delegates with her army, “Guard the king. The rest, on me. And bring him too.”

The group of Ice Nation warriors follow Echo who crosses the courtyard until she’s only a few feet away from the Skaikru people on the ground, giving Bellamy and Everly a better vantage point from up above. She mumbles to the man holding Jaha and the old Chancellor falls to the ground. Echo smirks and leans down as she speaks, “Tell them I only talk to Bellamy.”

Everly scoffs, watching Jaha approach the others and Echo walk away. She loosens her grip and allows her gun to fall slack at her side as she stands and faces a now standing Bellamy. “I think someone has a crush on you, janitor.”

“Jealous, Jameson?” Bellamy teases and his eyebrow raises as he chuckles. Everly narrows her eyes and laughs mockingly, “as if,” she says before turning and beginning the descent to the others. Bellamy laughs as he follows behind her but Everly’s scowl doesn’t give up.

“Fat chance we’re letting you go alone, you know,” Everly says as they near the bottom of the staircase and Bellamy looks down at her with a smirk, “I know you’re worried Ev, but it’s either I go alone or our plan goes to shit.”

“Echo’s a sociopath,” Everly responds as they round the corner to the others, “if she notices you’re stalling she’ll stab you in the heart, so you’re not going alone.” As a second thought Everly adds, “and I’m not worried about you, you idiot.”

Bellamy laughs and goes to reassure the Jameson girl but their conversation is cut short by a fuming Caro, “She’s correct, I’m going with you, that spy is ruthless.”

Indra is annoyed as she speaks, “Caro, no.”

“Caro, yes,” the blonde finishes the conversation and Bellamy nods his understanding before they all begin to discuss terms of condition. Everly bites at the skin on her thumb, arms crossed as she listens to the discussion around her, she can’t help but worry though. Echo and Bellamy may have been acquaintances at one point, but she broke any trust between them when she helped destroy Mount Weather. Everly knows Bellamy doesn’t trust Echo anymore, and since Caro seems to have a particular dislike for the girl, and Everly trusts the blonde grounder more than most, she can’t help but think Echo is a loose cannon.

She feels a nudge in her side and looks up, eyes meeting the dark hazel ones belonging to Bellamy, who sends her a look of questioning and concern. Everly shoots him a small, faint smile before she turns back to the group but notices Caro staring at her from across the group. The blonde is standing rigidly, fists clenched at her sides but she sends Everly a soft look and nods, and Everly guesses she’s trying to ease her anxiety. Everly nods back in appreciation.

Everly had met Caro back when Skaikru was at war with Trikru, when they were just beginning to create a truce to fight against Mount Weather. Caro was Indra’s second before Octavia, and when the truce was called Indra took on Octavia and Caro took on Everly. The two had a complicated relationship, somewhere between acquaintances and friends. They weren’t close but it was no secret that they held a softness for one another, Caro is Everly’s number one defender, and Everly would lay down her life for the blonde if need be.

The blonde is arguing with her old mentor about something and Everly watches as she snaps at Kane after he proposes something. The conversation is a bunch of back and forth, Caro continues to argue for a battle, but Abby and Kane push against her which only causes the blonde to grow more and more irritated. Bellamy joins in every few phrases, trying to find a solution but also keeping the peace. Everly’s the only one who’s actually silent though no one really notices, Everly thinks they only see her as a soldier and not the strategist she really is. But sneaking Octavia in by disguising her as Ontari had been Everly’s plan.

“She’s Ice Nation, she can’t be trusted,” Caro explains, eyebrows raising as a familiar boy saunters into the group. John Murphy grins grimly from his spot on the other side of Bellamy, “Never a dull moment, huh?”

Everly purses her lips, arms tightening around her waist as she watches Echo talk with her calvary. Sensing Everly’s spiral Bellamy reaches to his side and places a hand on her back; Everly looks up and they share a look, Bellamy’s thumb rubbing circles soothingly. They’re brought out of their moment by Indra, “Bellamy, pay attention. She’s part of the royal guard,  _ spies _ . That’s why she’s not marked. Very dangerous, very loyal.”

Bellamy grumbles, arms dropped from Everly’s back and moving to cross over his chest. Everly averts her gaze as she watches his biceps tense and flex, “Not to the people who saved her life.”

“Bellamy I know how you feel about her, but you can’t lose control,” Kane orders as Bellamy continues to clench his jaw, his eyes shooting from the group to where Echo stands, “You offer them technology, guns, whatever it takes to keep her talking. Is that clear?”

Everly’s eyes widen, bewildered and Indra seems to be in the same thought process, “I didn’t agree to give them guns.”

“Yeah Kane that seems like a recipe for  _ murder _ ,” Everly cuts in, hands thrown up in astonishment, Kane’s cut off from speaking by Murphy, “Well that’s probably because you’re not an idiot.”

“It won’t get that far,” Kane attempts to reassure the group, eyes meeting Indra’s and the still-fuming Caro’s before he looks back towards Bellamy, Everly and Murphy, “Our objective is to buy time for Abby to save the King, and if you wanna help, grab a weapon, stand a post.”

“Take mine,” Bellamy says, handing his rifle over to Murphy and nods to his position. Murphy nods in response and moves over to the spot, leaving Bellamy in front of an anxious Everly. He smirks and goes to make a teasing remark but pauses and thinks better of it. Caro calls for him from a few meters away and he nods, hand moving to grab Everly’s bicep. He squeezes in reassurance, “I got this.”

“Doubtful,” Everly calls after him and she hears him chuckle before she’s climbing the stairs of the building again, going back into her position. She sees Murphy leave his and rolls her eyes, thankful that they had other people to support Bellamy.

From below, Caro and Bellamy approach the Ice Nation troops. Echo moves forward and her response is immediate, eyes narrowing in hatred at the sight of the blonde, “I said I’d only talk to Bellamy, Caro.”

“It’s a good thing I don’t negotiate with spies then, isn’t it?” Caro spits back, her body moving to position itself in front of Bellamy’s. The boy sighs, hand moving to touch her shoulder and pulls. Caro retreats, standing next to Bellamy instead of in front of him and he addresses Echo, “We may be surrendering but we’re not stupid enough to approach without backup.”

Echo rolls her eyes before turning serious, “Before you say anything else, remember, I  _ saved _ your life by taking you out of Mount Weather.”

Bellamy cuts her off, feeling the burn of Everly’s eyes on his back, “People  _ died _ , Echo. Gina died, people’s family, my friend could’ve been paralyzed if they hadn’t gotten back to camp in time.”

“I’m sorry I couldn’t tell you to bring the girl,” Echo starts, but smirks slightly and her eyes twitch upwards to where Everly is perched in the building. Bellamy’s jaw clenches and he has to hold his arm out to stop Caro from launching forward, “Or  _ girls _ , should I say. But I was following orders, Bellamy.”

“And that’s all you do, isn’t it?” Caro asks tauntingly and Bellamy watches the Azgeda girl as she finally shows a hint of emotion. Hurt. The two girls are staring one another down as Caro continues, “ _ Follow _ .”

“ _ Enough _ , Caro,” Echo’s voice is loud and the blonde’s smirk falters slightly as the two share a meaningful look. Echo visibly breathes a deep breath before turning back towards Bellamy, “I know how it feels to lose someone you care about to war, but we do what we do for our people. You slaughter us, we slaughter you. That all went away in the City of Light, but it’s back now, so here we are.”

From her spot above Everly readjusts her grip on the rifle, eyes peering down the scope and she sees Bellamy shift uncomfortably, looking down at his feet. Everly narrows her eyes, aiming her gun to the spot between Echo’s eyes. The taller girl sends an annoyed glance her way and Everly grows confused. Echo knows she’s here, and from the way she appears to be speaking with Caro and Bellamy, and her body language, she doesn’t seem inherently hostile.

“What are your terms of surrender?” Echo asks, eyes leaving Everly and turning back towards the duo in front of her. At the phrase  _ surrender _ Caro’s glare hardens and her hand moves to tighten around the hilt of her sword. Bellamy sighs, sending the blonde a pointed look before he moves back to address Echo, “We recognize Ice Nation rule, and you honour Lexa’s coalition,  _ including _ the 13th clan.”

“No.” Echo’s response is immediate and Caro retaliates by unsheathing her sword, her legs moving quickly as she approaches the unaffecting brunette. Echo’s hand goes up, halting the approach of her guards as she looks down the sword aimed at her throat, eyes meeting Caro’s. Caro’s voice is low, piercing, “Then  _ no  _ surrender, spy.”

Bellamy reaches out, his hand hooking around the crook of Caro’s elbow and he pulls her back, “We’ll give you guns and show you how to use them.”

Echo scoffs out a laugh, her eyes gesturing towards the seething blonde at his side, “Trikru accepts this?”

“They’re not happy about it,” Bellamy answers before Caro can and Echo nods.

“Not much they can do now though, is there? Without an army,” Echo watches Caro’s eyes water and remembers that the blonde had been spared alongside Indra, her eyes moving towards Bellamy who shifts guiltily and she smirks, “You were there. Then you know why everyone hates Skaikru and why we can never accept your terms.”

“The alternative is war. Is that what you want?” Bellamy asks incredulously and Echo bites down another scoff as she answers, “No one wants war.”

“Speak for yourself,” Caro grumbles and both Bellamy and Echo send her an annoyed expression before they turn back to their conversation. 

“Lay down your guns, and we’ll let your children live,” Echo continues and starts to walk away, “I’ll give you time to decide.”

“Hey,” Bellamy exclaims, hand grabbing Echo’s arm, “I wasn’t done talking.”

He’s flipped onto the ground in an instant, Echo leaning above him with Caro’s sword directed towards her throat. She grins, “You are now.”

Caro presses the edge of her sword into Echo’s throat and the taller woman moves backward, Bellamy shuffling to his feet. Caro is murderous but Echo remains unbothered as she nods towards her group of guards. Both Caro and Bellamy pause, horrified, as one of the Ice Nation warriors approaches, Everly wrapped in a chokehold as he drags her forward. There’s blood coming from her forehead, making it clear that she’d been slammed against a wall.

The sounds of guns goes off and Everly watches as all Skaikru members aim their guns either at Echo or the man holding Everly hostage. Echo sighs, “Guns on the ground, or she dies.”

Everly’s eyes wide, tears gathering as she sends pleading looks towards Caro and Bellamy. Caro’s arm refuses to waver from where she holds her sword at Echo’s neck, but Echo pushes the blade away. Bellamy looks back at Kane, eyes a mixture of accusatory and pleading. They all breathe a sigh of relief as Kane yells, “ _ Guns on the ground, now! _ ”

Bellamy, Caro and Everly watch as each Skaikru member lowers their guns and approaches, arms up in surrender. The man holding her releases her from her chokehold and pushes her forward; she stumbles into Echo, who surprisingly helps her straighten out before wrapping her arm around Everly’s bicep tightly.

Everly looks at Bellamy and groans, “we’re  _ fucked _ .”


End file.
